What is Community Benefit?
Community benefit usually refers to developers providing 'goodwill funding' or 'agreed activities' for the immediate community, but it can refer to broader benefits of a development which are felt over a wider area. Current practice indicates that wind energy developers are generally willing to provide local financial support to the community in some form as a 'good neighbour' gesture. This practice has developed over time in response to local communities' desire to see greater benefits accruing to local people rather than see it all going out of the area. As this practice is becoming a regular feature of wind energy proposals, it becomes vital to ensure that there is clarity around the status of any benefits offered to local people within the planning process. Community Benefit Schemes are agreed with the developer, the planning authority and other community stakeholders. Scottish Ministers can be informed of such schemes in support of applications, however Ministers and Executive officials do not have a role in developing or agreeing these schemes.